According to to new polling data from Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, the Paul Ryan budget could be a serious political liability for Congressional Republicans who voted for it. The polling operation is Democratically aligned, so take that into account when reading their analysis. From GQRR:

Just 41 percent support the Ryan budget plan, described simply as “a budget for the next 10 years that cuts an additional 5.3 trillion dollars from the federal budget,” with 42 percent opposed. It is stunning that it gets only 41 percent at the outset when we only describe that it cuts money from the budget. It gets just a third of moderates, who make up more than a third of this electorate.

When the budget is described — using as much of Paul Ryan’s description as possible (see text box below) — support collapses to 34 percent, with just 16 percent strongly supporting the plan. The facts in the budget lose people almost immediately – dropping 7 points. Putting the spotlight on this budget is damning. A large majority of 56 percent oppose it, 44 percent strongly.

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In the final vote, after hearing both Democratic attacks and Republican arguments in favor of the Ryan budget, support for Republican incumbents erodes.

Critically, the biggest shifts in the vote come among key voting blocs—including 16 percent of independents and liberal-to- moderate Republicans, those living in the South, minority voters, young people, white blue-collar voters, and unmarried women.

How important a vote on a budget that went nowhere months out from the election will actually be for voters come November is hard to say, but the report is worth reading if you want an insight into how Congressional Democrats and their political operatives are hoping the election will shape up. The Paul Ryan budget with its large cuts and changes to Medicare is currently seen as some of the most fertile ground for Democratic attacks.

9 Responses
to “Democrats See Paul Ryan Budget as a Big Political Target”

I can attest that here in Wisconsin at least, the issue of tax cuts for billionaires and cuts in Social Security and Medicare is a drop dead winner unless the corpoprate Democrats behind Rahm Emmanuel cut a budget “grand bargain” and, like he’s tryin to do in the recall race, ObamaRahma cuts the legs out from under progressive Democrats and pushes a Blue Dog strategy (remember 1994). The issue of economic stimulus, tax fairness and jobs can actually be transfornational of the political dialogue. My concern is not only with the potential for sabotage of Democratic electoral issues but, more worrisome, is the starving of Democratic legislative candidates by the DNC and OFA…without a 50 state strategy to concentrate not only money but message, I think that we could be in for the nightmare of an Obama re-election and a loss of the Senate as well as the House.

We have seen the ugly profile of Rahm behind the anti-union, “centerist” primary front runner for governor here but in addition, all the old dead wood leadership including, to my immense sadness, David Obey are linnin’ up against the two progressive women candidates and I will predict that if Barrett wins the primary Walker will win the recall.

KEEP THE FAITH AND PASS THE AMMUNITION, AND BE SURE AND SHOOT AT THE RIGHT TARGETS!!

When President Obama signed the extension of the Bush Tax Cuts For The Rich into law, that was real. When the GOP voted on the so-called Ryan budgets – not really budgets because of the lack of specifics – it was all theoretical.

I’m not voting for Obama because I suspect he’ll sign another extension after the election.

Cue senior Democrat going on TV to say that they don’t agree with these partisan attacks on the Ryan budget made by Some On The Left, and Democrats and Republicans share a common goal of reducing the budget deficit, preserving Social Security by cutting it and working to screw ordinary Americans in a mutually respectful and bipartisan manner.

My money’s on Hoyer, but there are a number of other good possibilities.